This Year's Girl
by Zhailei
Summary: What if Madison Sinclair was the perfect 09er in all but the most important way? AU. Spoilers for episode 1:11 - Silence of the Lamb. Dick/Madison.


What if Madison Sinclair was the perfect 09er in all but the most important way? AU. Spoilers for episode _1:11 - Silence of the Lamb._

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"Madison!"

Madison Sinclair turned around, flicking her brown hair behind her.

"Yeah?"

"You know Dick, right?"

"Dick Casablancas?"

"Yeah. You dated his brother, right?"

Madison flinched. "What do you want, Cindy?"

Cindy smiled, and Madison felt a twinge of jealousy. Cindy Mackenzie should have been the 09er, she thought. She was practically made for it.

"You're having a party this weekend?"

"Yeah, and?"

"And ... I want you to invite me."

Madison stood for a moment. In all the years she'd known Cindy, the other girl had barely said two words to her, let alone asked her for a favour. "You want to come to my birthday party?" she asked.

"Yeah."

As Madison looked at Cindy, she wondered if the two hadn't been switched at birth. Cindy seemed to fit the 09er bill perfectly - she was pretty, blonde, and vacuous.

And poor.

"Okay." The two girls stood there for a moment, until Madison spoke again.

"Is that all?"

Cindy hesitated. "Dick's going to be there, right?"

"Yeah," Madison said. "He'll be there."

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"So how come I don't see you around school?"

Cindy paused. She could tell Dick the truth, and risk having him reject her. Maybe. Or she could lie.

"I guess we just haven't spoken a lot," she answered finally. Dick smiled, and she wondered if he'd even been listening to her answer. She wondered if she cared.

"So, do you want the grand tour?"

"I thought this wasn't your house."

"I know where the bedrooms are."

Cindy smiled. "Sure."

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"Hey, Cindy!"

Cindy turned as Dick ran up to her. "Dick. What's up?"

"Well, I thought you might want to get together after school ..."

Cindy smiled. "Sure. I'd love to."

"Great. I'll see you later."

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"So, what do you guys think about Cindy Mackenzie?"

"Her?" Pam asked, raising an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"Dick looked around. "Why not?"

"You know she's, like, poor, right?"

"Yeah, I heard her dad went bankrupt or something."

"Bankrupt? Did he even have enough money to start with?"

Everyone at the table laughed, and Dick joined in. "So that's a no?"

"Not if you actually want to be seen in public with her."

"Unless you want to slum it like Duncan," Logan added, and Dick laughed again, a little louder than was strictly necessary.

"Nah, man," he said. "There's plenty of decent hot girls to go around."

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"So, I missed you yesterday," Cindy said, as she approached Dick.

"Hey, Logan, wait up."

As Dick ran off, Cindy just stood there.

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"Hey, sorry about last week," Dick said, when they finally came up for air.

"That's okay ... what was going on?"

"Oh, just guy stuff, you know."

"Sure," Cindy agreed. Dick smiled, and pulled her back down to him.

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"So, you coming on Friday?"

"Hell, yeah," Dick said. "Babes, kegs ... babes. Wouldn't miss it."

Enbom leaned closer. "I bet Shelly Pomroy will be there."

"Yeah."

"Carrie said she's got a thing for you."

"So?"

"Dude, she's hot. You gotta tap that."

Dick shrugged. "Yeah, maybe."

"Dude," Enbom said. What's with you lately?"

"Nothing," Dick said. "Yeah, Shelly. Cool."

Enbom smiled.

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"So," Shelly said, leaning closer. "Do you want to give me the grand tour?"

Dick considered saying no, but Enbom was watching from across the room. So he smiled, and put his arm around Shelly's shoulders. "Sure."

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"Cindy! Cindy, wait up."

In the parking lot, Cindy stopped and turned to face Dick.

"What?" she asked. "What do you want?"

"Why are you blowing me off?"

Cindy laughed. "You're right," she said. "I forgot, that's your job."

"So," Dick said, leaning closer. "Wanna hang out at your place after school?"

Cindy frowned. "No, Dick, I don't." She kept walking. "Why don't you ask Shelly Pomroy?"

"Dude," Logan said, approaching Dick. "Were you just talking to Cindy Mackenzie?"

"Nah, man," Dick said. "What's up?"

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_"Cindy. Cindy ... come on, Cindy pick up. Pick up baby, pick up pick up pick up. Dick wants you, baby, Dick needs you -"_

_"Cindy. It's Dick. Come on, pick up the phone -"_

_"Cindy, Dick. Call me."_

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"Hello?"

"Cindy! Don't hang up."

Cindy paused, the telephone handset already halfway to its cradle. Finally, she put it back up to her ear.

"What?" she asked.

"Hey, I just thought we could get together later -"

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"Mom, don't answer that!"

"Hello? She sure is, I'll just get her for you." Mrs Mackenzie put her hand over the phone. "Cindy, sweetie, it's for you."

Cindy sighed, and took the phone. "Hi, Dick."

"Hey, are you mad at me?"

If she hadn't still been so furious, Cindy would have laughed. How could anyone seriously be that dumb?

"Yes, Dick, I am mad at you."

"Why?"

Cindy was shocked into silence for a moment. "Why do you think?" she asked.

"Wait, is it that Shelly thing, because -"

"Yes, it's 'that Shelly thing.'"

"Nothing happened, I swear."

"Nothing except you showing her to the master bedroom?"

"Yeah," Dick said. "Nothing except that. Look, Enbom was all at me to hook up with her, and -"

"And you didn't want to lost face in front of your friends, because god forbid you should admit to dating someone whose parents aren't millionaires."

"Yeah, exactly -"

Cindy blinked back tears as she hung up. She was not going to cry over Dick, "You'd think my father's money would be enough to buy me a clue," Casablancas. She just wasn't.

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"Cindy."

"Careful, Dick, someone might see you."

"Then let them see me." Dick took Cindy's arm, and she was ashamed that she let him. "What are you doing after school?"

Cindy paused. She shouldn't want to date him.

She was better than him.

"Going somewhere public with you," she answered, and Dick smiled.

"I"ll pick you up at your place."

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"This is not public, Dick."

"It's publicly my backyard."

Cindy shook her head.

"What? Beaver could come home any minute, or my dad ..."

Cindy shook his hand off her. "This is not what I meant."

Dick sighed, and leaned back in defeat. "Where do you want to go?"

"I don't know. Anywhere. The boardwalk."

"All right," Dick said. "We'll go to the boardwalk."

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Cindy looked sideways at Dick as he took her hand, and smiled. Maybe she had been wrong about him, after all.

"Hey," he said, and nodded towards one of the portable photo booths. "Wanna get some of those stupid pictures?"

"Yeah," Cindy said. "I want some stupid pictures."

"Cool," Dick said. He slipped his hand out of hers and laid it across her shoulders, and she moved closer to him. When they reached the booth, she pulled him in after her, and laughed and smiled and made faces at the camera until their shots had run out. As they heard the photos whirring into development, she pulled Dick to her. Smiling as his lips met hers, she leaned into him. Parting her lips, she felt his tongue against hers, and kissed him back; at first softly, and then more forcibly, as his hands slipped under her sweater.

"Mmm," Cindy moaned, as they broke apart. "Want to go back to your place?"

Dick smiled. "Hell, yeah."

Dick got out first; Cindy was about to follow him when she heard voices, Dick's and someone else's.

"Dude, you getting your picture taken?"

"Yeah."

Cindy went to slide out of the booth, but stopped as she realised that Dick was blocking her way. She nudged him, but he didn't seem to notice. She nudged him harder.

"Alone?"

"Yeah." That was Dick's voice, again, and Cindy sat back down.

"We're thinking about setting up a kegger on the beach, wanna come?"

"Yeah, dude."

As Dick walked off down the boardwalk, Cindy bit her lip. She was going cry over Dick Casablancas, after all.


End file.
